In Theaters

The Heat is both an excellent buddy movie and the most fun I’ve had at a sloppy physical comedy in years. Sandra Bullock has FINALLY found someone who wants to do physical comedy with her and is really really good at it. She’s been trying to do it, in her comedies, forever, and has never had the right foil. Melissa McCarthy is a physical wonder. She is hilarious. I’ve enjoyed her since her, lovely, non-physical dramedy work in The Gilmore Girls.

It makes me shake my head and sigh when I read reviews about kid’s movies written by reviewers that have no children. I imagine them writing their review from a city loft filled with white furniture while sipping a rare chardonnay.

Sound City was a Los Angeles studio where over a hundred certified gold and platinum albums were recorded during the 70’s and 80’s. It’s also the subject of a documentary of the famed analog studio and its fabled soundboard, which includes an in-studio jam with director Dave Grohl and some of his former bandmates.

Remember in college when you got super high and you said shit like, “We are totally connected so whatever I do now affects the future and what I did in past affects me now AND the past, present, and future exists right now so as infinite as the universe is outward we are inward, dude.” And then you tried to write it down but next morning the only thing the paper said was “the window is open?” Luckily, someone had Dragon-Voice recognition software and got a 1,500 page novel out of that experience and that has been made into a movie called Cloud Atlas. It’s a kind of awesome mind-fuck action flick multi-space/time love story that you can enjoy on the surface or get all trippy with on a date afterwards and she’ll think your deep or an asshole (I’ve experienced both!)

I always think writer/director Martin McDonagh has made more films than just two features. His first film, In Bruges, was pretty wondeful. You should see it. And now, with his second film, Seven Psycopaths, he managaes to create some really great characters, played by an excellent cast.

90% of the time a completed movie sits on a shelf or can’t get distribution because it is terrible and no one would want to see it. Eventually it gets dumped to DVD or theatrically released in February, and some of the money gets recouped that the investors have already declared as a loss. However, 10% of the time, everyone involved in getting a film to market is stupid, and good movies do not get the attention they deserve. Solomon Kane falls strongly in that 10%.

Upon seeing the trailers for The Watch, I was overly optimistic and intrigued. The rapid-fire quips and raunchy humor gave me hope towards a laugh-filled movie experience. After seeing the movie, I ad to dial down that optimism considerably and settle for being moderately entertained.